Nasty Infection

Last Sunday (12/12) Alexander came down with a nasty upper respiratory infection with a low grade fever.  It seemed to spread quickly throughout the house, and Wednesday I brought him to the doctor.  Since his fever was continuing and his cold was worsening, we thought he should be seen.  The doctor confirmed that, yes, he was very sick, but also that he had swelling in his right ear and behind his right eye.  It seemed like a viral infection had turned bacterial, as well, and typically at this point a doctor would prescribe an antibiotic and send you on your merry way.  This is where our journey must differ from the norm, and here we sit 9 days later with a sick toddler and over a week of work missed.

Because of Alexander's GI history, there is great concern with prescribing him antibiotics unless absolutely necessary.  As his doctor put it, "I don't want to give him an antibiotic for a few days, and have him sick for the next 3 months because of it."  While I have always known that antibiotics can cause some GI upset, we never thought about how the treatment of common illnesses could upset Alex's system.  Aside from little colds, this is only the second time Alexander has been sick with an infection in 21 months. 

Today we went back to the doctor.  His sinus infection seems to have dissipated a bit (the eye swelling has gone down), but his ear has gotten worse.  It seems to be more uncomfortable than painful.  He gave us a script for Zithromax (a 5 day antibiotic) to have in the event his fever jumped up to 101 or his ear seemed to be terribly painful.  We are not to fill it at this time - he said it's about 50/50 if we'll need to use it.  If we do, he must go on probiotics at the same time, and continue them for about 2 weeks after the antibiotic is done.  We are really hoping to not need it.  His GI system has continued to be mostly calm on the dairy-free diet with the Prevacid.  We do NOT want to upset it in any way!  So for now, it is just fluids, rest, and Tylenol for any pain management. 

Interestingly enough, he said that the infection may cause his ear to perforate, but that it would be a good thing for Alex.  It would drain the infection and heal on its own.  It's so weird how so many things that would appear "bad" are actually good, and the things that seem "good" can be so bad for him. 

Thanks to everyone who's been checking in.  And a big "Thank you!" to my wonderful coworkers (you know who you are) who have been so understanding and kind during my absence.  Alexander also sends his love to his playmates he's been missing.  I told him we were going to the doctor this morning and he said, "Sylvie?! Lou?! Cazowine?!" [Sylvia, Liam, Caroline].  He can't wait to come play again!

Merry Christmas to those who observe and a very Happy and Healthy New Year to you all!

All is well

So far so good with the Prevacid. Alexander is sleeping much better at night, and is more comfortable during the day.  He's been able to tolerate some foods in moderation that he couldn't have at all before (like fresh apples).  His diapers have remained relatively okay, and we aren't taking our "presents" home from day care anymore. 

Overall, we'd say he's doing very well.  We are going to continue to keep him completely off of milk and see if the lower GI issues return while he is OFF milk.  Though he's been having mini flare-ups, they only last for a day or so and then resolve (as opposed to the weeks long flare-ups before). 

We were able to enjoy home-made pizza as a family the other night - it was a very special moment for us.  A local organic grocery store had really good vegan cheese. It didn't taste like mozzarella, but it did taste good!  :) 

All is calm and well for the time being.  We feel blessed to have such supportive individuals in our lives and such a funny, sweet, and entertaining son. 

Approval!

After some tense moments today (and lots of prayers!), Alexander will be able to go back on the Prevacid.  What is (hopefully) even better is that there is now a generic.  Generic means a much less expensive prescription, but there's always that apprehension about whether or not it will be as effective. 

Say a prayer all goes well at the pharmacy and that Alexander's system responds favorably!

Meds

We contacted Alexander's doctor today to put him back on his Prevacid.  It was with a heavy heart I made the call.  I don't think any parent wants to have their child on meds long term.  We really tried everything we could to keep him off, but we have seen a steady increase in his reflux and decline in his sleep (which affects many aspects of his health and well being).  Since we can see where he's headed, we decided to put him back on before he is at a crisis point.  Now we wait for the insurance to approve it.  Our doctor has been relatively confident that it will go through okay.  We now wait and see.

Other than his intense gas pains, Alex's lower GI system has otherwise settled a little bit.  He is loving his books, puzzles, blocks and magnadoodle.  We are excitedly preparing for the holidays and hoping that Alexander will be feeling well by then. 

Blood test results

I got Alexander's blood test results today.  All of his levels were normal.  That should make us happy, and in a way it does.  It's also disappointing that we've hit another dead end.

His newest issue is these random, intense attacks of gas pain.  He had these back in February and March, but they had subsided since then.  I hope they stop soon - it's so heartbreaking to watch.

So, we are back with the default diagnosis of "it's just something he'll grow out of."

Bloodwork Complete

Alexander's pediatrician was all for the bloodwork, so I ran down there yesterday to grab the script and we were at the lab at 7AM this morning.  Unfortunately for Alex, he wasn't seen until 8:15 - that's a loooong wait for such a little, active guy.  He was extremely patient and we all survived the actual blood draw.  He checked some different baselines and ran the Celiac test.  We hope to hear the results by the end of the week.  His doctor also said that if we start being concerned that there might be internal bleeding (consistently excessive pain or disturbing diapers) to just run a diaper down and they'll screen it for blood.

So we'll see if anything shows up in his bloodwork, and just continue our watchful waiting. 

Happy Halloween!

I wish Alexander was able to enjoy this weekend more.  He had some nice visits with family and friends yesterday in his costume.  I know we all enjoyed seeing him dressed up more than he did.  Today, he was able to have a good visit with his Grandma, but really tanked shortly thereafter. 

His appetite has been down the past few days, and this afternoon/evening, he has been having terrible gas pains.  He is in so much pain - it is so sad. The past few days have also shown some questionable diapers.  We are calling the doctor in the morning and requesting the Celiac bloodwork. Hopefully, we will be able to get it done Tuesday and have that piece done.  We will see if it'll be that easy.

As a plus for Alex, since he can't have candy, he has received a number of Halloween gifts from family and friends!  Many new and fun things to enjoy, and lots of new ORANGE things!! (his favorite color).